Mar 14, 2018

Community Policing - An election promise tha...

Mar 14, 2018

Community Policing - An election promise that's becoming a reality

As I ran for election at the beginning of 2017, everywhere I went and everyone I spoke to talked about crime and the fear of crime in our communities.

People were, and still are, concerned about the increase, in what they often term, nuisance crimes – everything from petty theft, illegal motorcycles and speeding vehicles. But of greater concern are the incidents of robberies and violent crimes. These too often involve guns and arise out of gangs and drug use.

When we sat last year and debated the budget, my government agreed to the request from the Police Commissioner for new resources to tackle crime on our streets. Of the 75 new officer positions approved in the budget over the next three years, (at 25 a year), it was agreed almost one-third will be dedicated to community policing.

I campaigned for safer communities and said it would be achieved by making our border control more effective - at our airports and around our waters. A Coast Guard to assist with search and rescue as well as the detection and interdiction of boats arriving with illegal cargo. And by supporting the use of community policing as an effective tool to make communities safe and I was heartened that the Police Commissioner is of the same view and this is one of his priority areas.

So I was very pleased to hear that twenty-six Royal Cayman Islands Police officers have now been assigned to full-time neighborhood policing duties around Grand Cayman, as the department attempts to expand its visible presence within our communities.

Four officers and one supervising police sergeant have been placed in North Side and East End, 10 officers and a sergeant are in George Town, three officers and a sergeant will staff areas of Bodden Town and four officers plus a sergeant will staff West Bay.

RCIPS Inspector Courtney Myles will oversee the entire unit that will see beat officers on foot and on bicycles. They will be expected to engage directly with the people living and working in their beat area and will be operating in that area for a minimum of two years.

This is good news, and I encourage everyone to get involved, meet your community police officer, ask about setting up a neighborhood watch area and let’s all work together to make our communities safe.

Mar 08, 2018

Premier Hon. Alden McLaughlin - Honouring Wo...

It’s hard to believe that it’s only sixty years since the passing of a bill in the Cayman Islands that allowed women to vote and stand for election. ...

Mar 08, 2018

Premier Hon. Alden McLaughlin - Honouring Women's Month

It’s hard to believe that it’s only sixty years since the passing of a bill in the Cayman Islands that allowed women to vote and stand for election. My own mother was 33 years old before she had the right to vote, today that seems impossible to conceive.

It is 9 months ago that the country went to the polls and it’s interesting to note that just over a quarter of the candidates nominated for the 2017 General Election were women.

This is a step in the right direction on the road to political equality, however, when you realize that women make up more than half of our population, they are still under-represented in the Legislative Assembly. I encourage more women to stand for public office and to step forward into the political arena to become involved in the decision making and bring women and family issues to the fore.

No-one can deny the role that women have played in the development of these islands. Caymanian women took over in family, business, and government when the men went to sea and women played a more active role in social and economic life. However it wasn’t until after World War II that women were accepted as partners in the political process.

I come from a line of very strong women who worked in the community at a time when most women stayed home. My paternal grandmother, Ethel Connor, was a school teacher. My maternal grandmother, Lizzy Bodden, worked as a seamstress and on her own raised two children after her husband died when my mother was five years old.

My mother, Althea, worked as a dispenser, nurse, pharmacist and sometimes doctor for 36 years at the Government hospital. It was really the only job she ever had. I know from her experiences the difficulties and discrimination that women in the workplace encountered.

As we celebrate International Women’s Month we celebrate women’s achievements – from the political to the social – while calling for gender equality.

In addition to the Sex Disqualification (Removal) Law on December 8, 1958 (which allowed women the right to vote), other milestones include the Gender Equality Law 2011 and the extension of CEDAW (Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women).

Whilst we have made great strides, there is still much to be done. With the advancement of technology and social media, the power of corporate, social and grassroots initiatives, and the voices of supportive men and women willing to speak out on issues concerning gender equality, everyone can be an advocate for change. We must ensure that girls and women are treated fairly in the workplace, and in society generally.

I also want to draw attention to domestic abuse and highlight the great work that the Family Resource Centre, as well as the Cayman Islands Crisis Centre, are doing by providing safe shelter to victims, support and counselling, as well as educating the community on what family violence is and what healthy relationships are.

When people talk about domestic abuse, they often focus on domestic violence. But domestic abuse occurs whenever one person in an intimate relationship or marriage tries to dominate and control the other person. Domestic violence and abuse are used to gain and maintain total control over you. Abusers use fear, guilt, shame, and intimidation to wear you down. Your abuser may also threaten you, hurt you, or hurt those around you.

Domestic violence and abuse do not discriminate. It occurs within all age ranges, ethnic backgrounds, and economic levels. And while women are more commonly victimized, men are also abused.

Figures show that globally, women’s education, health and violence towards women is still worse than that of men. International Women’s Day, which is part of Honouring Women’s Month, is a day when men and women across the world come together to recognize these inequalities whilst celebrating the achievements of women.

Show your support for Honouring Women’s month by participating in the following events: